Fortune's Rocks Series by Anita Shreve

Olympia Biddeford is a precocious and high-spirited young girl who isn't shy about expressing her own opinions. But Olympia also isn't shy about expressing her sexuality -- with John Haskell, one of her father's friends who is 30 years her senior. The lovers are soon discovered, and both of their lives are torn apart: Haskell's wife leaves him, and Olympia is sent by her father to a school out west... moreOlympia Biddeford is a precocious and high-spirited young girl who isn't shy about expressing her own opinions. But Olympia also isn't shy about expressing her sexuality -- with John Haskell, one of her father's friends who is 30 years her senior. The lovers are soon discovered, and both of their lives are torn apart: Haskell's wife leaves him, and Olympia is sent by her father to a school out west. When Olympia delivers John's baby nine months later, the child is taken from her and adopted by another family. But Olympia will stop at nothing to get her son back -- including returning to Fortune's Rocks. less

In the textile-manufacturing region of New Hampshire in 1929, newlyweds Honora and Sexton Beecher wrestle with all the wonders and challenges that young couples have always faced. They've just purchased a house near the ocean that needs a lot of work, but the couple is dedicated to making it a home. When the economy fails and a single unscrupulous act perpetrated by Sexton is revealed, more than love will be required to keep the marriage from collapsing under the weight of this betrayal... moreIn the textile-manufacturing region of New Hampshire in 1929, newlyweds Honora and Sexton Beecher wrestle with all the wonders and challenges that young couples have always faced. They've just purchased a house near the ocean that needs a lot of work, but the couple is dedicated to making it a home. When the economy fails and a single unscrupulous act perpetrated by Sexton is revealed, more than love will be required to keep the marriage from collapsing under the weight of this betrayal. Sexton -- formerly a traveling salesman -- is forced to take a job at the local mill alongside other men, women, and children whose very survival is being threatened by the harsh burden of their daily toil. Repeated pay cuts and inhumane conditions propel the workers closer to a potentially violent clash with management and union breakers. Alliances are formed, honor is challenged, and character flaws become fatal as the tinderbox explodes, leaving old bonds broken and new ones bolstered.Momentum builds steadily in this beautifully developed story, unfettered by needless machinations. Shreve deftly weaves the lives of a diverse collection of characters into a tapestry that is rich with the complete range of human emotion and lush with tactile nuance. (Ann Kashickey) less

A pilot's wife is taught to be prepared for the late-night knock at the door. But when Kathryn Lyons receives word that a plane flown by her husband, Jack, has exploded near the coast of Ireland, she confronts the unfathomable-one startling revelation at a time. Soon drawn into a maelstrom of publicity fueled by rumors that Jack led a secret life, Kathryn sets out to learn who her husband really was, whatever that knowledge might cost... moreA pilot's wife is taught to be prepared for the late-night knock at the door. But when Kathryn Lyons receives word that a plane flown by her husband, Jack, has exploded near the coast of Ireland, she confronts the unfathomable-one startling revelation at a time. Soon drawn into a maelstrom of publicity fueled by rumors that Jack led a secret life, Kathryn sets out to learn who her husband really was, whatever that knowledge might cost. Her search propels this taut, impassioned novel as it movingly explores the question, How well can we ever really know another person? less